White House 1600 Daily: Our pledge to America’s workers

The Day Ahead

President Donald J. Trump will sign an Executive Order that sets the stage for developing a National strategy for workforce development. Watch live at 3 p.m. ET.

Our pledge to America’s workers

The over 3.2 million jobs created on President Trump’s watch have benefited a diverse span of Americans: women, manufacturers, Hispanic Americans, African Americans, young people, people with disabilities, and more. Many groups that have struggled historically are seeing their unemployment levels now hit record lows. Many of these jobs require new skills. “We want to make sure that we have the workforce development programs we need to ensure these jobs are being filled by American workers,” President Trump says. Today, President Trump will be joined by Ivanka Trump and more than 20 companies and organizations in pledging their unwavering commitment to America’s workforce. The President will sign an Executive Order that establishes the National Council for the American Worker, charged with developing a real National strategy to address workforce development. Among other tasks, the Council will help expand the number of apprenticeships available to Americans today. Watch the President’s announcement live at 3 p.m. ET. More: The White House’s new push to help ‘forgotten men and women’

A fix for our deteriorating National Park System

“America’s National Park System is the envy of the world,” Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke writes this week. “Our parks tell the story of our nation, ranging from the origins of the American conservation ethic, to our sacred battlefields, to the Civil Rights Movement. Quite frankly, our American park system represents our American values.” Our parks drew 330 million visitors last year, and we now risk loving them to death, Secretary Zinke explains. “The backlog of critical maintenance and repairs in the National Park Service stands at $11.6 billion.” Until recently, addressing that backlog seemed out of reach. President Trump supports a bipartisan bill, now before the Senate, that would preserve the splendor and beauty of our National Parks. The President’s 2019 budget request to Congress proposed the largest investment in public lands infrastructure in American history. In that spirit, President Trump’s leadership is bringing both parties together to protect our National heritage. Preserving our parks is not a Republican or Democrat issue—it’s an American issue.